LOCAL ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICE INTERESTED IN SURREY PIT BULL CASEAug 11, 2008THERE'S BEEN ANOTHER INCIDENT ON THE MAINLAND INVOLVING PIT BULLS...THAT BEARS A RESEMBLANCE TO A SERIES OF ATTACKS IN THE PAST YEAR.

A MAN WALKING HIS DOG IN SURREY WAS ATTACKED ON THE WEEK-END BY A PACK OF FIVE PIT BULLS. THE ATTACKING DOGS WERE NOT RUNNING LOOSE...A MAN, APPARENTLY THE DOGS' OWNER...EVENTUALLY GATHERED THEM UP INTO A VEHICLE AND LEFT THE SCENE.

SIMILAR SWARMINGS HAVE OCCURRED IN THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS IN SURREY; NANAIMO; AND NORTH SAANICH...AND THE CAPITAL REGION'S ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICE HAS IDENTIFIED A SUSPECT. THAT MAN...AND HIS DOGS...HAVE SO FAR ELUDED AUTHORITIES.

VANCOUVER - Police and the SPCA say they are investigating whether four pit bulls seized in Vancouver Monday are the same dogs involved in a series of attacks on people and animals on Vancouver Island and in the Greater Vancouver area.

"All of these dogs, at this point, are under investigation for being dangerous," said SPCA spokeswoman Janice Levers.

Vancouver Police Cpl. Jack Hundial said the pit bulls, believed to be involved in an attack against a man and his dog Sunday, were taken from their owner in Vancouver on Monday.

Hal Harris, the owner of the pack of five pit bulls, was arrested on a warrant. All the dogs are being held at the SPCA in Surrey, B.C., a Vancouver suburb.

Police were called after a resident spotted a vehicle that matched the description of a vehicle linked to the attack. Investigators questioned Harris and seized the dogs.

Levers said officials must confirm whether the dogs seized truly are the problem animals before the SPCA can seek a court order to have them destroyed.

Harris, a homeless man, could possibly be charged with criminal negligence.

In Sunday's attack, Jody Tomlinson was out walking his dog Garden on a leash in a wooded area in Surrey, when the dogs pounced on Garden. When Tomlinson tried to defend Garden, an Italian Mastiff, the pit bulls turned on him. Garden was taken to the vet for emergency treatment, receiving 20 staples to close her wounds. Tomlinson received numerous skin punctures during the attack but no serious injuries.

The pit bulls have also allegedly attacked dogs in an 11-month reign of terror near Victoria as well as a jogger and cyclist in Surrey.

In an attack near Victoria on July 7, a mini American Eskimo named Sophie was killed.Police said Harris appears to move frequently between Vancouver Island and the mainland.A Vancouver Island bylaw control officer said authorities will seek a provincial court order to destroy the four pit bulls.

"We are happy that we have finally got the dogs detained," said Capital Regional District bylaw officer Don Brown.

Pit bulls seized in Vancouver; owner questioned then releasedSource: CBC NewsPosted: 08/11/08 5:35PMFiled Under: CanadaAuthorities have seized four pit bulls they believe were responsible for a series of attacks on southern Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland, Surrey RCMP said.

The dogs' owner, who has not been identified, was questioned and released by Vancouver police after animal control officials removed four adult pit bulls and a pit bull puppy from his truck Monday morning, RCMP spokesman Cpl. Jack Hundial told CBC News.

"The owner has been a person of interest in several attacks in Surrey, regarding a person taking several pit bulls into parks and the dogs being involved in attacks on other animals and [biting] of some humans," said Janice Levers, manager of the Surrey SPCA.

A man walking his dog in a Surrey park Sunday was bitten by more than one pit bull.Victim Jody Tomlinson told CBC News the owner of the dogs didn't even try to stop the attack.

"The dogs just came at us. There were two full-growns and three adolescents," Tomlinson said.

"The two large ones took down my dog ... they were pulling her all over the place. The other little ones were biting me and jumping up on my face trying to get me," he said.

"I kept yelling to him [owner], 'Get control of your dogs! Get control of your dogs!'"Tomlinson suffered only minor leg injuries and didn't require medical attention but his dog was severely injured and had to be taken to a vet for treatment.

It was the ninth pit bull attack that has been reported in B.C. in the past 11 months - seven in Surrey and two on Vancouver Island.

The others involved a jogger and cyclist who were injured by pit bulls in separate incidents in Surrey, and the remaining six incidents involved dogs being bitten. Two of the animals died from their injuries.

Probe launched in alleged attack by 4 pit bullsReported incident a case of owner negligence, officer says, while province has no plans to ban the breed

IAN BAILEY

August 12, 2008

SURREY -- The SPCA in Surrey has taken the lead in an investigation into whether four pit bulls attacked a man who says he was bitten while walking his dog on the weekend.

Police seized the dogs yesterday from a 53-year-old man with no fixed address whose pets are being linked to several similar attacks on the mainland and Vancouver Island since last year.

The man is not facing criminal charges.

"We are aware of the person of interest owning other dogs that have been in the parks and attacked other dogs," Janice Levers, manager of the Surrey branch of the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said in an interview.

"I certainly hope we can change his mind that what he has been doing is wrong."

She said there are no immediate plans to put down the pit bulls, which were behind bars in the SPCA's shelter yesterday. Such action hinges on the result of the investigation, under way with RCMP help.

Ms. Levers said she is aware of at least six attacks in the past year involving pit bulls linked to the man. They include attacks on a jogger, a cyclist and other dogs.

On Sunday, a 39-year-old man was allegedly bitten twice while out in the afternoon. His dog was taken to a veterinarian for treatment.

After the attack, a man gathered the dogs and fled, but witnesses were able to provide a description of his vehicle.

Blair Lekstrom, Minister of Community Development, said the province will not follow other jurisdictions that have banned the dogs.

"We have no plans to ban pit bulls right now. Local governments have the full autonomy to make the decision to either ban pit bulls or not."

The minister said the issue is more about irresponsible pet owners than an inherently dangerous breed of dog.

Yesterday, Vancouver police responded to reports of a suspicious vehicle that matched the description of the one sighted after the attack a day earlier.

Police approached and Vancouver Animal Control was summoned to take custody of three adult pit bulls and one puppy.

The male owner was questioned and released. RCMP and the SPCA are refusing to name him.

Don Brown, chief bylaw officer for bylaw services in the Capital Regional District on Vancouver Island, linked the man to a March attack by several pit bulls on a Yorkshire terrier that led to $6,000 in veterinary bills.

He also linked him to a July incident in North Saanich in which an American Eskimo dog had to be put down after a fight with four leashed pit bulls.

Mr. Brown said in an interview that the man had been able to evade authorities because "he's very elusive. He's had no fixed address for the longest time. He's got addresses listed where he doesn't live. He's just, kind of, couch surfing. The last address he gave us was a false address. We actually found the right address, but then found out he had been there and left and we didn't have a forwarding address for him."

Mr. Brown said the case highlights the conduct of an irresponsible dog owner.

"That's the bottom line. Why would a person have that many pit bulls for one? And why would he continue to walk them in areas where there's pedestrians, cyclists and other dogs? It doesn't make any sense."